March 14, 2024
This is a glimpse of just one section of the show floor at The ARA Show™ 2024 in New Orleans.
The six-year hiatus from the Big Easy came to an end in February when The ARA Show™ 2024 kicked off at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans.
The 67th edition of the American Rental Association’s (ARA) premier event — which is the world’s largest equipment and event rental industry-specific convention and trade show — offered attendees plenty of opportunities to network and learn from peers, industry experts and vendors.
Saturday, Feb. 17, featured the return of EventsU, a full-day program designed exclusively for those in event rental with plenty of rental-specific education and networking.
The education continued Sunday with presentations delivered by engaging expert speakers and rental industry panel discussions covering tracks grouped into four themes: “Learn & Lead,” “Connect & Collaborate,” “Empower & Engage” and “Plan & Strategize.”
For Charles Hewett, president, ABC Equipment Rental, Tulsa, Okla., Brandon Schroeder’s presentation, “Believe in Safety,” was a game-changer.
Zach Elder, 5 Star Rental, Denton, Texas, left, joins his fellow rental operators in creating some excitement during EventsU.
“He was one of the best speakers I have ever seen at the show,” Hewett says. “His presentation was so powerful. He lived through a near-death experience and he crafted his story so well that it was extremely impactful. He showed how you always have to keep safety front and center. You can’t take any shortcuts, and you can’t assume that other people around you know what to do. You have to make sure that everyone is on the same page. He was amazing and his presentation hit home,” Hewett adds.
Sunday evening, Gary Jones Jr., owner, North Main Tool Rental, Houston, who serves as Texas Rental Association (TRA) president, joined nearly 180 of his Texas rental colleagues for the first TRA social at the show.
“It was wonderful. Everyone really enjoyed it and asked whether we will do it again next year. The event offered great networking. Besides many familiar faces, we saw a lot of new people we haven’t seen at other TRA events, which was great,” he says.
Then on Monday, the Keynote Session with Jon Taffer of the hit TV show “Bar Rescue” seemed to strike all the right notes.
“I was blown away,” says Stephanie Layson, owner, Party Pro Rents, Tulsa, Okla., who serves as treasurer on the ARA of Oklahoma board. “I always love attending the Keynote Session. I was so pumped up by his presentation. He was on fire and very inspirational,” Layson says, adding that she took lots of notes of what he had to say.
“He talked about that, as a business owner, you have to move and move quickly. I also liked his comments that, ‘If you can blame someone else for your failure, you have no reason to change.’ It really resonated with me as a business owner and what our day-to-day challenges are. I also liked how he touched on marketing, especially his comments about making our delivery trucks really stand out. All our trucks are wrapped the same. It got me excited thinking about what we could do,” she says.
Nathan Smith, Confetti’s Party Rental, Little Rock, Ark., right, converses with Russ Hicks, AAA Party Rentals, Laurel, Md., at the YPN Reception.
Many attendees also enjoyed returning show favorites like the Young Professionals Network (YPN) Reception, Regional Receptions, Women in Rental Breakfast, ARAPAC Reception for members of ARA’s political action committee, and the ARA Foundation Charity Auction and Reception.
Nathan Smith, executive vice president, Confetti’s Party Rental, Little Rock, Ark., who serves on the ARA of Arkansas board, attended the YPN Reception.
“The coolest part was connecting with friends I made at the Leadership Conference in Chicago this past November. I also had the opportunity to meet a young lady who was just starting a new rental company outside of Atlanta. This was her first show. She was interested in learning everything about event rental. We talked for about two hours. I hope, if anything, I helped her avoid a few future headaches,” he says.
Layson was glad she attended the Women in Rental Breakfast.
“I loved what she [Dr. Michelle Rozen, aka The Change Doctor] had to say. There was specifically an excerpt in there that reminded me of a current situation that occurred. She said that instead of reacting, take your 20 minutes. That was a big takeaway for me because sometimes we can react immediately. Take that time. That one was a home run for me,” she says.
Kathy Dyer, manager, D.J.’s Rentals & Sales, Elk City, Okla., agrees. “Michelle’s presentation was wonderful. Her topic was really relevant to me. It seems every time I come to a Women in Rental event, they get better and I enjoy them more,” she says.
All enjoyed taking part in the Regional Receptions.
Rental operators gather for the Region Four Reception.
“It was perfect,” Smith says. “Almost all the ARA of Arkansas board members were there. We just grabbed a table and started mingling with each other and everyone else. They got to meet my father and I was able to meet some of their parents. I even made some friends with rental operators from Texas and met up with some of the people from Oklahoma who attended the Leadership Conference with me,” he says.
“The food and networking were great,” Layson adds. “It also was nice to see Jennifer [Rodriguez from Marianne’s Rentals, Oklahoma City, who serves as ARA of Oklahoma board secretary] receive the Leadership Impact Award for Region Four,” she says. For more details on why Rodriguez was recognized, see the story in this issue.
The opening of the trade show on Monday, which featured more than 650 exhibitors, was an impressive sight to behold, attendees say.
“I just said, ‘Wow.’ I felt like there were vendors for days, particularly on the equipment side,” Layson says.
The team from Marianne’s Rentals, Oklahoma City, reviews the latest product offerings during the trade show.
“We hit the ground running on Monday,” Smith says. “My father was primarily focusing on ordering new tent parts, looking at new rental software systems and expanding our inventory with new styles of chairs. I always enjoy walking the floor and meeting new vendors. I now have contact information for vendors from furniture to new flatware. We also found a new chair vendor. We even went back on Wednesday before the show floor closed to buy some chair samples to take back and show our team.”
Layson also went with a specific equipment list. “I was looking for velour drapes, more tents, other rental product opportunities to add to our business model and the one-offs that I normally don’t look for at the show. An example of that was there was a company selling furniture moving supplies. I thought, ‘Bingo, we need this.’ We had been shopping online for these things. I loved making a personal connection with this and the other vendors,” she says.
Jones also hit the show floor with a very strategic purpose. “We were looking at what we were doing with our fleet and planning for the future,” he says. “We were on the show floor from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday and Tuesday and then were there on Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. We bought some new breakers, compaction equipment and core drilling equipment. We also found some new vendors that we would have never known about if we hadn’t gone to the show.”
Besides being able to connect with vendors, Smith found the show floor to be another opportunity to network with other rental operators. “I saw a rental friend from Virginia and others I had met at the Leadership Conference. Everyone was sharing their experiences with certain products and talking about what was new. Everyone wants to help everyone else,” he says.
While on the show floor, Smith also connected with ARA staff at the ARA Resource Center where he learned about the ARA Peer Advisory Groups and the ARA Foundation Mentoring Program.
Kerrigan Ambers, United Rentals, Rogers, Ark., right, connects with Mitchell Sasse, Best Event Rentals, Fort Collins, Colo., at the YPN Reception.
“I am definitely thinking about being part of those,” he says.
Just before the wrap-up of the show, many attendees shared an unforgettable evening with chart-topping country singer Mitchell Tenpenny at the sold-out Tuesday Night Event at House of Blues New Orleans.
“That was incredible. I loved the venue, and Mitchell Tenpenny was excellent. Whether you were a country fan or not, I think everyone had an excellent time. It was awesome,” Smith says.
Layson agrees. “Tuesday night was incredible. I loved the venue, and Mitchell Tenpenny was an engaging performer. The House of Blues is a fun venue with rooms to escape and lounge, yet you could still see the concert on television while hanging out with friends,” she says.
Show attendees from Region Four had such a phenomenal time they can’t wait to do it all again next year.
“We are already booked [hotel-wise] for next year in Las Vegas,” Smith says. Layson, Jones and Hewett say they will be Las Vegas-bound next year, too.
Click here to view the show wrap-up video from Rental Management.
